Card file



April 13, 1965 MEYERS 3,178,029

CARD FILE Filed 001;. 5, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Raymond L. mga'r's ATTORNEY R. L. MEYERS A ril 13, 1965 CARD FILE 2 Sheets-$heet 2 Filed Oct. 5, 1962 mmvroa Ragmond. L. mgar-s ATTORNEY n L'Uxm United States Patent Ollice 3,17%,fi29 Patented Apr. 13, 1965 This invention relates to a card file and more particu larly to a file for holding various sized packs of cards positioned for easy removal.

In a modern business office, a file card is maintained for each customer and on which data is recorded for transfer to punch card or tabulating machines. Various groups of punched cards may be sorted by machine and must be stored temporarily before being fed into the tabulating machine. It is helpful to have the cards sorted and arranged according to special classifications and in varying sized groups, but they must be readily accessible for feeding to the machine. Hence, it is desirable to provide a card storage which satisfies this requirement.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a card file container having readily removable and replace able shelves which will hold various sized piles or packs of cards and maintain them in accessible positions for feeding to a machine.

It is a further object to provide a card file having shelves which will accommodate cards of different sizes and thicknesses of pack, and wherein the shelves may be readily mounted in different arrangements as the occasion requires, and to provide a construction in which each shelf is positioned for holding a group of cards safely and without danger of their falling out and becoming seriously disarranged.

Another object is to provide a readily disengageable mount for a card file container which will hold the cards in desired positions.

A still further object is to provide a rotary mount for one or more card file containers which may be adjusted to various positions as needed. Other objects will be apparent in the following disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a perspective front view of the card file container which has two types of card supporting shelves therein;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the underside of the front portion of one of the shelves which supports a stack of horizontally arranged cards;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective detail showing how a horizontal card shelf is removably mounted on the card file container;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 5 which shows the prongs of a card file shelf in a supported position;

FIG. 5 is a section taken on the line 55 of FIG. 1 looking toward the back Wall;

FIG. 6 is a sectional detail on the line 6-6 of FIG. 5 which shows the 'two shelf-supporting back walls;

FIG. 7 is a sectional detail showing a side wall and a plan view of the top of a card supporting shelf having its prong inserted through the back Walls;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary showing of a front elevation of a laterally inclined shelf for holding cards in a semi-upright position;

FIG. 9 is a sectional detail on the line 9- of FIG. 8 showing the upper prong mount for the shelf of FIG. 8;

FlG. 10 is a sectional view on the line 1dl0 of FIG. 8 showing the support for the lower prong of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a perspective detail, broken away, which shows a mount for removably holding a card file on a table top;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a rotary table carrying two card files, which is mounted on a storage cabinet for other card files; and

FIG. 13 is a sectional detail of the turntable mount for the rotary table of FIG. 12.

In accordance with this invention, a card file has been provided as a container having an open top and front within which several shelves are removably mounted for the storage of cards in various sizes of packs. Each shelf fits between upright side walls of the container, and one or more prongs on the shelf slidably interfit within and are positioned by horizontally aligned holes in two spaced back walls. The shelves may be adapted for holding the cards horizontally; or, for cards wider than the space between the walls, the shelf may hold the cards upright or in an inclined position. The card file is primarily useful for holding punched cards temporarily for feeding them into and from a tabulating machine, and for convenience of access, the file or container is removably mounted on a movable table, and preferably a rotary turntable, which permits orienting the cards as required for the machine operation.

The card file of FIG. 1 is preferably made of sheet metal and comprises a back wall 10 and at least two vertical side walls providing a compartment for cards which permits access at both the top and the front of the card file. There may be only a single card file compartment between the two outer side Walls 12, but in the showing of FIG. 1 intermediate or divider side walls 14, 15, and 1.6 are arranged in parallelism between the outer side walls 12 to form several open compartments for cards. A bottom support for the card file may be formed by having the side Walls 124,6 projecting slightly below a bottom structure 18 welded between the side walls. The bottom edges 19 of the side walls are horizontal, but the front edges 2% of the side walls preferably slope backwards. Likewise, the back wall it slopes rearwardly and substantially parallel with the front edges 20 and the bottom 18 is perpendicular to the back wall so that a pack of substantially horizontal cards on the bottom will be tipped rearwardly at a slight angle in order to urge the cards toward the back wall. i

Each bottom portion 18 between each pair of opposed side walls may be separate and formed integral with a back wall portion as shown in FIG. 11. That is, each vertical portion 26 of the back wall 10 is bent along the line 21 to project forwardly as the bottom 18. The front portion of this sheet metal is bent downwardly to form a vertical front wall 22; and the latter terminates in an inwardly projecting horizontally strengthening flange 23. Each metal portion of the back and bottom wall is a separate unit mounted on the opposite sides of an inner side wall or divider 14, 15, or 16. Each of these wall portions forming the bottom and back wall structure is spot welded to one side of the adjacent divider partition.

FIG. 11 also shows how the card file may be removably mounted on a table top 27. This comprises a U shaped plate 28 having two upturned parallel tapering. side flanges 29 terminating in outwardly turned and aligned flanges 30. The flat bottom of the plate is suit-.

ably mounted as by means of screws, on a table top 27. The parallel side flanges 29 are V-shaped, so that the flanges 3G slope rearwardly. A pair of slide rails 34, projecting laterally and inwardly from the side partitions, are spaced in alignment and are mounted to slope rearwardly and parallel with the flanges 3t! of the support 28, so that when the latter is secured on the table top the card file casing may be slid into place with the slide rail 34 riding below the slide rail 3%. The higher end of the support 28 is located toward the front of the card file casing, so that when the container is slid rearwardly the rails serve to wedge the container or casing firmly into 3,1 3 position against the table. Several of these mounts may be used and preferably one between each pair of opposed side walls so as to hold the card file container securely.

FIG. 1 shows two forms of card supports or shelves '40 and 60 which may be mounted in various arrangements and ordinarily in multiplicity between the opposed side walls of the card file compartments. Each of the shelves 40 is preferably mounted in a substantially horizontal position, but tilted back slightly so as to urge the cards rearwardly. The preferred structure for the horizontal shelf 40 (FIGS. 2 and 3) is one in which a single piece of sheet metal is shaped to provide a flat shelf top 41 integral with a front wall and two depending parallel Vertical side walls 42 which terminate in inturned flanges 43. The top 41 is also bent to provide a front flange 44 which is inturned to provide a flange 49 aligned with the flange 43. The shelf has a rear prong arranged to be mounted on the rear wall structure of the casing. For convenience in manufacture and assembly, two spaced prongs are employed. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the side walls 42 project rearwardly to form two prongs 45 adapted to be inserted into aligned holes in the rear wall structure. Each prong has narrow parallel, horizontal flanges 46 and 47 spaced by the width of the wall .42. The flange 46 is a continuation of the shelf top 41 and the part 47 is a narrow terminal portion of the lower flange 43. These prongs are intended to be inserted into a selected hole 50 in the wall and an associated hole 52 in a narrow vertical rear Wall frame 54 spaced horizontally from the wall 10 as shown particularly in FIG. 3. These holes are preferably arranged, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, on opposite sides of each of the dividers 14, and 16 and on the inner sides of the outer walls 12.

Each wall 10 is a separate piece located between the pair of opposed side walls of each compartment, i.e., between two adjacent dividers 16 or between an outer wall 12 and an inner partition or divider 16. Each wall 10 is bent along spaced vertical lines to form narrow channelshaped members, each of which has an inwardly directed flange 54, spaced from the main portion of wall 10 by a connecting portion 55, as shown in FIG. 3. The flanges 54 on the opposite edge portions of each wall 10 are aligned and may be considered as forming a rear back wall spaced from the forward wall 10 of the compartment. The central portion 55 of each channel member contacts an adjacent side wall 12, or an inner divider 16, and it is spot welded thereto. The portion 55 of this channel member is cut away between the wall 10 and the back wall flange 54 to form part of the holes 50 and 52 which receive a shelf prong 45, 46. The narrow top surface 56 (FIG. 3) of the cutaway part of the channel portion 55 forms a slide rail between the holes 50 and 52 on which the shelf prong rides. This construction thus provides two sets of vertically spaced openings 50 and 52 adjacent to the two opposed side walls of each card compartment, and the shelf prongs may be inserted into a pair of these openings and there ride on the upper and lower surfaces of the cutaway parts of the central portion 55 of the channel member between the two spaced rear wall portions 10 and 54. The side 42 of the shelf slides against and is laterally supported by the side wall 10 or 16 when the shelf is inserted into position. The direction of movement of the shelf 40 is indicated by the dotted lines in FIG. 3.

It will also be appreciated that the top and bottom surfaces of the wall parts which form the holes 50 and 5 2 serve as shelf retaining surfaces. That is, the shelf bears down on the bottom of the front hole 50 in wall 10 and upwardly against the top of the rear hole 52 in the wall 54, as well as the corresponding upper and lower surfaces 56 of the cutaway channel part 55. The aligned surfaces of the two holes are arranged to cause the shelf 40 to slope slightly rearwardly. Although but one of the shelves 4%) is shown, it is to be understood that a multiplicity of shelves may be inserted in any appropriate pair 4 of the aligned holes so as to hold stacks of cards of various thicknesses.

At the right in FIG. 1 is shown a shelf 60 arranged to hold cards of sizes larger than the width of the compartment between the pair of vertical side walls. This comprises a metal plate, as shown in FIG. 8, which is intended to be arranged at an obtuse angle to the horizontal. At its upper end is a downwardly depending vertical flange 62 which terminates in a prong 63 (FIG. 9) corresponding with the prong 45 of the horizontal shelf 40. The prong 63 may have a straight top surface, but it is shown in FIG. 9 as having an upwardly projecting lug 64 adapted to lock behind the wall 10 when in use. There is, however, sufficient clearance in the holes to permit tilting the shelf for removal of the prongs. The lower portion of the plate 60 is bent upwardly to form a support 66 for carrying the bottoms of a stack of cards, and this portion 66 terminates in a vertical edge portion 67 which has a laterally projecting lug 68 (FIG. 10) adapted to be inserted through selected holes 59 and S2 in the walls 10 and 54, as above explained. These holes are made in proper size for insertion of the lugs and retention of the card supporting shelves. The parts 62 and 67 are spaced to engage the opposed side walls of the card file container. This shelf structure is therefore adapted for holding a stack of cards in an upright arrangement and a plurality of shelves may be mounted in any of the appropriate pairs of holes of the walls. Hence, by employing various cornbinations of these two shelves 40 and 60, cards may be mounted as desired in the card file casing.

The card file casing may be mounted, as above explained, on various table tops. It is shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 as mounted on a rotary turntable so that it will be comparatively easy for the operator of a punched card or tabulating machine to swing the file into various positions as needed. As there illustrated, a turntable may be formed of a metal plate 70 having a depressed central portion carrying a pin 72 which in turn is suitably mounted on the top 73 of a cabinet or table structure. The weight of the cards is preferably distributed by mounting the table on a plurality of rollers 75 mounted beneath the plate for rolling on the top of another table or cabinet. These rollers may be suitably mounted on pivot pins carried by depending lugs on the underside of the rotary table 70 and they serve to hold the table horizontal against tilting. One or more card file casings may be removably mounted on that rotary table 70 by means of the structure shown in FIG. 11. As shown in FIG. 12, two card file casings are mounted back to back on the top of the table. Also, as indicated, a set of card files 76 may be suitably mounted within the cabinet so that the machine operator has a large number of cards available for use in the machine.

It will now be appreciated that this card file structure lends itself'for many varied uses and for handling a large number of file cards. It is also to be understood that various modifications may be made in the structure, and that the above description of a preferred embodiment is not to be interpreted as imposing limitations on the appended claims.

What is claimed as novel and useful is:

1. A card file comprising a bottom support, a first back wall and at least two opposed side walls forming a container which is open at the top and the front, said back wall having a set of vertically spaced openings bordered by shelf positioning surfaces, a second back wall spaced from the first back'wall which has openings and shelf positioning surfaces substantially horizontally aligned with and opposed to said back wall openings and surfaces, and a card supporting shelf having a rearwardly projecting prong arranged for removable insertion into a selected pair of prong arranged opposed openings in the two back walls and into engagement with said surfaces to hold the shelf in a card supporting position.

2. A card file according to claim 1 in which the prong and the surfaces of the opposed openings in the back walls hold a substantially horizontal shelf tilted slightly rearwardly so as to urge a stack of cards towards the back Walls.

3. A card file according to claim 1 in which the back walls have spaced sets of vertically spaced openings located respectively near two opposed side walls, and said shelf has sides engaging two opposed side walls and two spaced prongs selectively insertable into opposed openings in the back walls.

4. A card file according to claim 1 in which the shelf has a laterally inclined surface for supporting the side of a pack of cards and a lower surface for supporting the card edges, said shelf having an upper prong removably insertable into a pair of back wall openings adjacent to one side wall and a lower prong insertable into a pair of back wall openings adjacent to the opposed side wall.

5. A card file comprising a bottom support and 0pposed vertical side walls of a plurality of open compartments, a separate back wall for each compartment formed of a plate shaped at its upright edge portions adjacent the side walls to provide opposed channel members extending rearwardly, said channel members having aligned flanges opposing and spaced from the front portion of said plate, said front portion and the flanges having sets of vertically spaced pairs of aligned openings, and a card support having a pair of rearwardly projecting prongs near its opposite edge portions mounted in aligned openings and carried by said plate and flanges.

6. A card file comprising a container having a rear Wall, a bottom, two side Walls, and at least one intermediate wall forming a plurality of card supporting compartments which are open at the front, a table on which the container is supported and cooperating means on the container and the table which releasably secure the container on the table, said cooperating means comprising laterally projecting and aligned flanges on two container walls which are inclined longitudinally and form slide- Ways and a channel member secured to the top of the table which has laterally projecting flanges forming slideways parallel with the container wall flanges, said container being removably mounted on the table by interfitting and relatively moving said slideways longitudinally of the inclines, said slideways being so located and spaced from the table top as to draw the container into firm contact with the table.

7. A card file comprising a cabinet having a top, a bottom, and partitions forming a plurality of compartments, a table rotatively mounted on the cabinet top, pivot means interconnecting said table and top which provides for rotative movement of the table and holds the table horizontal during its rotation, a plurality of separate card files on said table, and separate means slidably mounting and securing said files on the table which provide for separate and rapid removal and replacement of said files, each file having a plurality of vertical partitions forming open front compartments for cards and said table providing for orientation of each file to a card loading position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 168,448 10/75 Butterfield et a1 312202 436,303 9/90 Crandall 312-202 2,486,032 10/49 Jiminez 248-225 X 2,722,392 11/55 Talbot 248-49 2,761,944 9/56 Yannelli 21150 2,808,223 10/57 Abeles 248-349 FOREIGN PATENTS 709,960 Great Britain. of 1954 CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A CARD FILE COMPRISING A BOTTOM SUPPORT, A FIRST BACK WALL AND AT LEAST TWO OPPOSED SIDE WALLS FORMING A CONTAINER WHICH IS OPEN AT THE TOP AND THE FRONT, SAID BACK WALL HAVING A SET OF VERTICALLY SPACED OPENINGS BORDERED BY SHELF POSITIONING SURFACES, A SECOND BACK WALL SPACED FROM THE FIRST BACK WALL WHICH HAS OPENINGS AND SHELF POSITIONING SURFACES SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY ALIGNED WITH AND OPPOSED TO SAID BACK WALL OPENINGS AND SURFACES, AND A CARD SUPPORTING SHELF HAVING A REARWARDLY PROJECTING PRONG ARRANGED FOR REMOVABLE INSERTION INTO A SELECTED PAIR OF PRONG ARRANGED OPPOSED OPENINGS IN THE TWO BACK WALLS AND INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SURFACES TO HOLD THE SHELF IN A CARD SUPPORTING POSITION. 